Why stent in heart

At first, plaque build-up may be classified as stable coronary artery disease, but an acute or sudden rupture of inflamed plaque can lead to abrupt closure of the artery. When this occurs, it manifests as a heart attack, which is an emergency situation. Depending on the location and the extensiveness of the plaque build-up or blockage, angioplasty may be used, which is the opening of the artery with a specialized catheter.

Oftentimes, as a part of this minimally invasive procedure, a stent will also be placed in that same artery to prevent future blockages and keep the vessel healthy long term. The use of angioplasty and stent placement is known as percutaneous coronary intervention, which is an extremely common way to treat plaque build-up and blockages in the coronary arteries. During angioplasty, a balloon-tipped tube called a catheter is inserted into the body through either the groin or the arm and guided to the blocked artery.

The balloon is then inflated, which pushes plaque to the sides of the artery and clears the blockage. Your doctor may choose to place a stent in the area of the blockage. The heart stent is placed over the balloon catheter so that when the balloon is inflated, the stent expands and is secured in place. Once an opening in the artery has been expanded, the balloon is deflated and the catheter is then removed, but the heart stent remains behind. The stent holds the artery open, allowing for improved blood flow to the heart muscle and relief of symptoms such as chest pain angina.

In addition to providing personalized care, our team of experts works to ensure a happier, healthier tomorrow. This goes beyond our comprehensive spectrum of services and innovative approach to ensure you have the tools and resources you need to lead a healthy life every day.

Login to MyChart. Health Partners. You'll be linked up to a heart monitor and given a local anaesthetic to numb your skin. An intravenous IV line will also be inserted into a vein, in case you need to have painkillers or a sedative. The cardiologist then makes a small incision in the skin of your groin, wrist or arm, over an artery where your pulse can be felt.

A small tube called a sheath is inserted into the artery to keep it open during the procedure. A catheter is passed through the sheath and guided along the artery into the opening of your left or right coronary artery. A thin, flexible wire is then passed down the inside of the catheter to beyond the narrowed area.

A small, sausage-shaped balloon is passed over the wire to the narrowed area and inflated for about 20 to 30 seconds. This squashes the fatty material on the inside walls of the artery to widen it. This may be done several times. While the balloon is inflated, the artery will be completely blocked and you may have some chest pain.

However, this is normal and is nothing to worry about. The pain should go away when the balloon is deflated. Ask your cardiologist for pain medication if you find it uncomfortable. You shouldn't feel anything else as the catheter moves through the artery, but you may feel an occasional missed or extra heartbeat.

This is nothing to worry about and is completely normal. If you're having a stent inserted see below , it will be already fitted onto a balloon and opens up as the balloon is inflated. The stent will be left inside your artery after the balloon is deflated and removed. When the operation is finished, the cardiologist will check that your artery is wide enough to allow blood to flow through more easily. This is done by monitoring a small amount of contrast dye as it flows through the artery.

The balloon, wire, catheter and sheath are then removed and any bleeding is stopped with a dissolvable plug or firm pressure.

In some cases, the sheath is left in place for a few hours or overnight before being removed. The stent helps enlarge a segment of the artery to improve blood flow, which should reduce or eliminate symptoms of chest pain. Stent technology is continually developing so we now use stents coated with medication which helps prevent the stent from clogging and narrowing a process called restenosis.

Stents may be used instead of bypass surgery in some selected patients. Diabetic patients with multiple coronary blockages may do better with bypass surgery. Stents are placed during a coronary angiogram. A small tube called a balloon catheter is inserted into the femoral artery leg or the radial artery arm , and advanced toward the heart to the very top of the aorta.

After the blockage is identified, a wire is placed into the coronary artery to the site of the blockage and the stent is loaded on to the wire. The stent is expanded to the size of the artery and may be expanded by inflating a balloon within the stent.